Photos: Protesters Kneeled Outside Bears' Home Opener In Support Of Colin Kaepernick

By Stephen Gossett in News on Sep 11, 2017 5:00PM

Dozens of supporters of Colin Kaepernick marched and took a knee outside Soldier Field during the Chicago Bears' home opener on Sunday, as a show of solidarity with the still-unsigned quarterback. Many observers say Kaepernick is being blackballed from the NFL for having knelt during national anthems last year as a protest against police brutality and racial injustice.

"Kaep took a knee 'cause he's fighting for me," demonstrators chanted as they marched through Museum Campus. They carried signs that read "Black Lives Don’t Matter to the NFL," "#BlackoutNFL" and "We R Not Here 4 Your Entertainment."

Protesters then knelt down near the Field Museum steps, across from Soldier Field on Sunday morning. There was a brief moment of confrontation when one Bears fan attempted to cross a police line to antagonize activists, Chicagoist photographer Tyler LaRiviere said.

Many supporters of Kaepernick nationwide are calling for a boycott of the NFL after Kaepernick not only went unsigned throughout the offseason, but wasn't invited to try out at any training camps—even as quarterbacks with less impressive career statistics were given opportunities. (Critics of Kaepernick have also pushed back against the NFL, as other players have taken the QB's lead and sat or knelt during anthems.)

Ratings for last Thursday's opening game tumbled for the fourth consecutive year.

A Chicago bar owner made national headlines last month when he announced that he would not air NFL games in either of his two South Loop bars until Kaepernick is signed.